Summary

• Parks & Recreation had emotional moments that made viewers cry happy tears, such as Lil' Sebastian's memorial service and April and Andy's surprise wedding.
• Leslie's victories, such as winning the city council election and Ben's surprise proposal, were heartwarming and made fans shed tears of joy.
• The strong friendships in the show, like Leslie and Ann's, made for emotional farewells when characters left Pawnee, but also heartwarming reunions, like Leslie racing to be by Ann's side when she gives birth.

Although Parks & Recreation lived on for a total of seven seasons, which were full of ups and downs in the lives of the characters, but all of them with a lot of humor.

The many adventures of Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler) and her friends and coworkers from Pawnee’s Parks Department left the audience with plenty of memorable scenes and lines, though there were also some emotional moments. Parks & Recreation made its audience cry a couple of times throughout its seven seasons, but not all of them were because of sad or emotionally moving moments. The series also had some happy and funny moments that made viewers cry happy tears and tears of laughter, adding to the legacy of Parks & Recreation as one of the best TV shows of the decade.

15 Lil’ Sebastian’s Memorial Service

Parks & Recreation Season 3, episode 3, “Lil’ Sebastian”.

Lil’ Sebastian was a celebrity in Pawnee, but Ben (Adam Scott) and the audience were surprised to see that he was a miniature horse. Unfortunately, Lil’ Sebastian ed away shortly after his first appearance in Parks & Recreation, and Leslie and the Parks Department crew decided to hold a memorial service for him. Seeing the whole group coming together to show their love for Lil’ Sebastian, as well as all of Pawnee singing Andy’s (Chris Pratt) song “5000 Candles in the Wind”, is enough to make anyone shed a couple of tears.

14 April & Andy’s Wedding

Parks & Recreation Season 3, episode 9, “Andy and April’s Fancy Party”.

In Parks & Recreation season 3, Andy and April (Aubrey Plaza) surprised their friends and family with their wedding. After a couple of obstacles in their relationship, Andy and April finally get together, and in season 3, they host a dinner party for their family and friends. To everyone’s surprise, the party is Andy and April’s surprise wedding, and though Leslie tries to stop them at first, she eventually realizes how good they are for each other, and it’s heartwarming to see Andy and April sharing their love with their families and friends.

13 Everyone Gets Drunk At The Snake Lounge

Parks & Recreation Season 3, episode 13, “The Fight”.

This iconic Parks & Recreation moment is one that made viewers cry with laughter. Tom (Aziz Ansari) invited the Parks crew to the Snakehole Lounge nightclub for the launch of his new alcoholic beverage, Snake Juice. The drink turned out to be very high on alcohol, making the crew get drunk really fast. In one of Parks & Recreation’s funniest scenes, every Parks member talks to the camera when they are completely drunk, and they all show different sides to them: April talks in another language, Ron (Nick Offerman) smiles and dances, Ben talks gibberish, and Leslie cries because she had a fight with Ann.

12 Leslie Wins The City Council Election

Parks & Recreation Season 4, episode 22, “Win, Lose, or Draw”.

Season 4 of Parks & Recreation focused on Leslie’s campaign to become City Councilor. In the season finale, Election Day had everyone nervous about the outcome, as Leslie and her opponent, Bobby Newport (Paul Rudd), were separated by a very small margin. The episode has two moments that surely make any fan of the series cry: Leslie voting for herself and the final results. After a lot of tension, Leslie is announced as the winner, and she gives a heartfelt speech thanking her friends and ers. Leslie’s emotion as well as the reaction of her friends make this episode one of the most heartwarming ones of the series.

11 Ben Proposes To Leslie

Parks & Recreation Season 5, episode 5, “Halloween Surprise”.

Leslie and Ben fought for their relationship and made it work despite the rules at their jobs, and in season 5, they took a big step. Leslie and Ben were looking at houses as they were moving in together, but Leslie thought they were going to have to on their ideal house. As she took a look inside the house one last time, Ben arrived and proposed to her. The moment was completely unexpected as neither Leslie nor viewers saw it coming, and it’s such a sweet scene that shedding a couple of happy tears is inevitable.

10 Chris’ Wedding Gift To Ben

Parks & Recreation Season 5, episode 14, “Leslie and Ben”.

Chris Traeger (Rob Lowe) and Ben were best friends, so it’s no surprise that Chris gave Ben a very special wedding gift. Chris gives Ben a letter from the Statehouse that said they were assigned to Pawnee, dated May 1st, 2010. Chris reminds Ben they were supposed to be in Pawnee for eight weeks, which ended up turning into three years. Chris tells Ben he’s happy it happened that way and that he met Leslie and both he and Ben found a home. The gift was enough to make Ben cry, and in turn, the audience also shed some tears.

9 Leslie & Ben’s Wedding

Parks & Recreation Season 5, episode 14, “Leslie and Ben”.

In the same episode as above, Leslie and Ben finally get married, though it doesn’t go as planned. After Jeremy Jamm ruins their wedding, Ann (Rashida Jones) and the rest of the Parks crew organize a small, surprise wedding for them at City Hall. Right before showing the surprise to Leslie, Ron tells Leslie how much she means to him, and he then walks her down the aisle. Leslie and Ben then get married surrounded by their friends, and though it isn’t the wedding they planned, it ends up being a much more personal and emotional moment for them.

8 Ann & Chris Leave Pawnee

Parks & Recreation Season 6, episode 13, “Ann and Chris”.

Ann and Leslie’s friendship is one of the best things in Parks & Recreation, and seeing Ann and Chris leaving Pawnee was very emotional for both Leslie and the audience. While Ben tries to think of a perfect gift for Chris (and in the end, he and the rest of the guys give him an empty box to fill with new memories), Leslie throws a party for Ann, but the tears start rolling when Leslie says goodbye to Ann. Although it’s obviously not the end of their friendship, it’s the end of an era for the strongest friendship in all of Pawnee.

7 Leslie Reunites With Ann

Parks & Recreation Season 6, episode 17, “Galentine’s Day”.

Luckily, it wasn’t long until Ann and Leslie met again. During a Galentine’s Day lunch, during which Leslie attempts to find a new best friend, Ann calls her to tell her she has given birth. Leslie then races to Michigan to be by her best friend’s side, and she not only reunites with Ann but also meets her son. Leslie goes to lengths to show her love and for her friends, and the strong bond between Leslie and Ann will always be heartwarming enough to make anyone cry.

Note: "Galentine's Day" was Leslie's Valentine's Day celebration for her female friends, celebrated a day before Valentine's Day.

6 Ron’s Surprise Trip To Scotland

Parks & Recreation Season 6, episode 2, “London: Part 2”.

There are many things that Ron doesn’t like, including Europe, but Leslie knows what he loves and gives him the best gift ever in Parks & Recreation season 6. As a belated wedding gift, Leslie organizes a puzzle/scavenger hunt for Ron that leads him to an island in Scotland where he visits Lagavulin Distillery, where Ron learns where “the nectar of the gods” (a.k.a. whiskey) comes from. To finish off the experience, Leslie instructed Ron to read out loud a poem by Robert Burns. It’s one of the rare occasions where Ron showed his emotions, as he was deeply moved by the poem and the whole experience, and so was the audience.